The Voice News: Gaza Strip – Israeli airstrikes and gunfire killed at least 79 Palestinians across the Gaza Strip on Saturday, including dozens near an aid distribution site operated by the US- and Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), according to local medical officials. The attack marks another grim chapter in the ongoing humanitarian crisis gripping the besieged enclave.Health workers at al-Awda and Al-Aqsa hospitals in central Gaza reported that 15 of the victims were struck while attempting to reach the GHF aid hub near the Netzarim Corridor, despite GHF’s announcement that it was not operational on Saturday.Eyewitnesses described scenes of desperation as thousands gathered near the site, driven by hunger and deteriorating conditions under Israel’s now 15-week blockade and military campaign. The rest of the casualties occurred in separate Israeli strikes across the Strip, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health.Since the GHF launched operations on May 27, at least 274 Palestinians have been killed and more than 2,000 wounded in and around aid distribution areas, the ministry said. Despite repeated attacks, many in Gaza continue to risk their lives to access food and basic supplies. “People are beginning to view GHF sites not as aid points, but as execution zones,” reported Al Jazeera’s Tareq Abu Azzoum from Deir el-Balah. “But with no alternatives, families are forced to come anyway.”Militarisation of Aid DistributionThe GHF—spearheaded by Johnnie Moore, an evangelical Christian figure and former advisor to Donald Trump—has promoted a new model of aid distribution that bypasses traditional UN channels. The United States and Israel have endorsed the model, accusing Hamas of diverting UN aid for military use—a claim the UN denies, citing lack of evidence.Critics, including the United Nations, have called the new GHF system neither impartial nor neutral, warning that it has militarized aid access, forcing civilians to travel long distances, often across conflict zones, to receive life-saving assistance.Meanwhile, Israel has acknowledged arming gangs inside Gaza, which it claims helps counter Hamas. However, these groups have also been blamed for looting aid convoys, further exacerbating suffering on the ground.Widening Displacement and Targeted AreasLater Saturday, the Israeli military ordered mass evacuations in the southern cities of Khan Younis, Abasan, and Bani Suheila, warning residents to move west into the so-called humanitarian zone, ahead of renewed military operations against “terror organizations.”According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), more than 80% of Gaza is now either militarized, under forced displacement orders, or within zones where these overlap. An estimated 665,000 people have been displaced again since Israel ended the last ceasefire in February.Mounting Death Toll and Humanitarian CollapseSince October, Israeli military actions have killed over 55,290 Palestinians, most of them civilians, and left large swaths of the densely populated territory in ruins. Gaza, home to over two million people, now faces catastrophic levels of malnutrition, mass displacement, and near-total collapse of basic services.Despite international efforts—primarily from the United States, Egypt, and Qatar—to broker a new ceasefire, negotiations remain stalled. Hamas demands a permanent halt to hostilities, while Israel refuses to rule out a resumption of its military campaign.As the conflict drags into its ninth month, and humanitarian conditions worsen by the hour, many in Gaza are left with no choice but to walk toward aid sites that may offer food—or fatal consequences.
